Material-raking machine for road paving



April 21, 1931. w N H 1,801,420

MATERIAL RAKING MACHINE FOR ROAD PAVING Filed Nov. 1, 1929 bfSheets-Sheet l I April 21, 1931- A. w. FRENCH MATERIAL BAKING MACHINE FOR ROAD PAVING Filed Nov. 1. 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 P 21, 1931- A. w. FRENCH 1,801,420

MATERIAL RAKING MACHINE FOR ROAD PAVING Filed Nov. 1. 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 orne Patented Apr. 21, 1931 STA ALFRED W. FRENCH, OF CHICAGO, ILLINGIS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO BLuVJ-KNGX OGMPAITY, OF PETTSB'URGEI, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY MATERIAL -R-AKING MAC Application filed November after the same have been deposited upon the sub-surface of the roadway, to the end that said materials may be vented to relieve air pockets and be rendered uniform in texture over the entire width of the road immediately preceding compacting and so-called finishing of said materials.

The present invention is in the nature of an improvement upon themechanism disclosed in my pending application, Serial No. 277,613, filed May 14, 1928, and has for its main object to provide a simple, easily adjustable and very efficient mechanism for performing the desired functions with respect to the plastic paving materials acted upon.

The preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings in connection with and as an adjunct or attachment to a pavement compacting and finishing machine.

In said drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a compacting and finishing machine provided with the mechanism constituting the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same.

Fig. 3 is va fragmentary detail side elevation on an enlarged scale showing the mechanism of this invention.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary detail section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Figs. 5 and 6 are fragmentary longitudinal sectional views on the line 55 of Fig. 1.

The present invention is confined to the specific mechanism illustrated in the fragmentary view of Fig. 3 and in conjunction with or as'an attachment to a compacting and finishing machine such as is illustrated and described in the patent to WVilliam Ord, No. 1,522,138, issued January 6, 1925, the latter being" exemplary of a machine adapted for use in connection with said mechanism. The

latter may, of course, be embodied in a separate machine in which event the engine drive from the finishing machine could not be used and would necessitate a separate engine and,

HIKE IFOR- ROAD PAVING 1, 1828. Serial No. 404,163.

to this end, the carriage and engine of the finishing machine may be taken to be that of the present invention by omitting the compacting and finishing members or screeds from the said machine and retaining only the association of the engine with the traction wheels and with the rake members of the present invention.

In the drawings, the carriage comprising side members 1 and cross-members 2, is equipped with a suitable engine 3 having clutch controlled association with the traction wheels 4 for propulsion. The side members 1 are equipped with extensions 5 supported upon idle wheels 6 and 7, the latter and the wheels 4 being adapted to travel on the customary side forms of the road bed.

The extension members 5, together with transverse members or beams 8 and the beams 9 and 10 intermediate of and parallel with the members 5, constitute the frame of an auxiliary carriage supported upon said idle wheels 6 and 7 Suitably ournalled in bearings mounted on the members 5 and 9 adjacent the carriage of the finishing machine, is a shaft 11 geared by means of sprocket wheels and chain 12 to the shaft 13 associated with the engine shaft.

Parallel with the shaft 11 are four short counter-shafts 14 journalled in hearings on the members 5 and 9, respectively, and axially aligned with each other. Adjacent the front end of the'auxiliary carriage there is also a pair of longer counter-shafts 15 journalled in bearings mounted on the members 5 and 10.

The members 9 each comprise a pair of parallel beams spaced from each other. Two of the counter-shafts 14 span the spaces between the respective pairs of said beams. As shown in detail in Fig. 4, a second pair of beams or bars 16 is disposed below and parallel with the beams or bars 5 and 9, respectively. These members 16 carry the bearings for shafts 17 parallel and vertically aligned with the shafts 14. The latter are geared to he shaft 11 by means of sprocket wheels and the chain 18. The shafts 14 and 17 are associated by means of the spur gears 19 and 20.

The other countershafts 14 with their associated parallel shafts l7 span the spaces be tween the members 5 and short parallel beams 21 suitably comprised in the frame of the auxiliary carriage.

The shafts 14 at the left-hand side of the auxiliary frame may be taken as one pair and those at the right-hand side as another pair, the shafts 17 associated with said rcspective pairs of shafts 14 being included with the latter as parts of rake actuating mechanisms.

The spur gears 20 are disposed upon the opposed end portions of the respective pairs of shafts 17 and each thereof is equipped with a suitable radially adjustable crank-pin 22. Interposed between each pair of gears 20 a bar 23 equipped with regularly spaced rake teeth 24, said bars having side arms 25 which are pivotally engaged at their lower ends with the crank-pins 22 and are provided in their upper ends with longitudinal slots 2 Adjustable stud-shafts 27 are suitably associated. with the slotted ends of said arms 25 and are pivotally associated with the ends of rocking links 28 which, at their other ends, are suitably pivotally associated with pins or stud shafts 29 mounted on frame members. The links 28 are suitably rendered adjustable in length by means, for example, of the turnbuckles 30, shown in Fig. 3.

The single pair of countershafts 15 corresponds to a pair of the countershafts 1 1, the former being similarly geared to the shaft 11 and to countershafts 31 corresponding with the shafts 17. Said shafts 31 are equipped at their opposed end portions with gear wheels 32 meshing with gears 33 on the shafts 15 and, like gears 20, equipped with radially adjustable crank-pins associated with the end arms of the rake bar 31 corresponding in details of construction with the rake bars 23 and similarly associated with the rocking links 35 corresponding in details of construction with the links 28.

It will be noted that the beams 10 are spaced farther apart than the spacing of the beams 9 from the beams 5 and that the rake bar is substantially twice as long as either of the bars 23. It will also he noted that the bar 34 is equipped with substantially twice the num ber of rake teeth of either bar 23 and is so arranged relatively to the bars 23 that the outermost rake teeth of the bar 34- are spaced from the rake teeth nearest the inner ends of the bars 23 just as far as the rake teeth of the respective bars are spaced from each other, so that the bars 23 and 34 together span the entire width of the road bed. The gearing between the shaft 11 and the respective shafts 14 and 15 is preferably so arranged that the rake teeth of the former are rising as those of the latter move downwards and vice 'versa.

In operation, the rake teeth have both an up and down and a rocking movementimparted to them, the latter being longitudinally of the road bed and, while the said teeth penetrate the plastic paving material, this movement is toward the carriage of the finishing machine and opposite to the direction of travel to thus aid rather than oppose wheel traction to propel the whole mechanism on the side forms, the direction of rotation of the gear wheels 20 and 33 being identical with that of the traction wheels.

Thus, when a rake bar is disposed at the upper limit of its movement, the rake teeth will be substantially vertically disposed and, as the gears associated with that bar rotate from this position, the lower ends of the rake teeth will swing forward with reference to the direction of travel and also downwards. After the gears 20 or 33 associated with that bar, have completed a quarter turn, the rake teeth will have reached the limit of forward swing and will, generally, at this point or previously, have attained the level of the material to be raked so that, upon further rotation of the gears, the penetrating and rearward movement of the teeth will occur and will continue until said gears have made a half revolution. Thereafter and during the next quarter-turn of said gears said teeth will continue their backward swing and begin upward movement, the latter continuing until the full revolution of the gears is completed.

The radial adjustment of the crank-pins of the gears 20 and 33 will obviously determine the depth of penetration of the rake teeth into the paving material while the adjustment of the stud-shafts in the slots of the end arms of the rake bars will vary the arc of swing of said rake bars. The lengthening or shortening of the rocking links 28 and 35will determine the angle of the rake teeth at the moment of initial penetration of the paving material and also the angle thereof at the point of initial upward movement of said teeth. Thus, for example, when the crank-pins of the gears are at the upper limit of their movement, then, if the said rocking links are shortened. the rake teeth will be angularly instead of vertically disposed, their lower ends being then disposed forward of the vertical plane of the axis of rotation of the gears carrying the said crank-pins.

I claim as my invention:

1. A machine of the type specified comprising a carriage adapted to travel on the side forms of a road bed, an engine thereon for propelling the same, a pair of rotatable crank carrying members on said carriage, a rake bar disposed between said members and rotatably engaged at its ends with the cranks thereon, upwardly projecting means on said rake bar, and rocking link connection between said means and said carriage for cooperation with said cranks to impart to said bar an up and down and rocking motion, and gearing between the engine and said rotatable mem bers.

2. A machine of the type specified comprising a carriage adapted to travel on the side forms of a road bed, an engine thereon for propelling the same, a pair of rotatable members, radially adjustable cranks thereon, a rake bar disposed between said members and rotatably engaged at its ends with the cranks thereon, upwardly projecting means on said rake bar, and rocking link connection between said means and said carriage for cooperation with said cranks to impart to said bar an up and down and rocking motion, and gearing between the engine and said rotatable members, the adjustment of said crank-s adapted to vary the up and down and rocking movements of said bar.

3. A machine of the type specified comprising a carriage adapted to travel on the side forms of a road bed, an engine thereon for propelling the same, a pair of rotatable crank carrying members on said carriage, a rake bar disposed between said members and rotatably engaged at its ends with the cranks thereon, upwardly projecting means on said rake bar and longitudinally adjustable links pivotally connecting said means with the carriage for cooperation with said cranks to impart to said bar an up and down and rock ing motion, and gearing between the engine and said rotatable members 4. A machine of the kind specified comprising a carriage adapted to travel on the side forms of a road bed, an engine for propelling the same, a rake member on said carriage extending transversely of the side forms, mechanism associated with said rake member for rotating the same about a horizontal axis, means associated with said rake member and the frame of the carriage for preventing said rake member from rotating about its own axis and cooperating with said mechanism to cause the teeth of the rake member to move up and down and rock back and forth, and gearing associating said mechanism with said engine.

5. A machine of the type specified comprising a carriage adapted to travel on the side forms of a road bed, an engine for propelling the same, a series of rake members arranged to conjointly span the space between the side ii'orms, pairs of rotatable memhere on said carriage arranged at opposite ends of said rake members and equipped with cranks engaging in the ends of said members, upwardly projecting arms at the ends of said rake members, and rocking links pivotally associated with the upper end portions of said arms and with frame members of the carriage for cooperation with said rotatable members to impart to said rake members a compound motion, and gearing associating said rotatable members with the engine.

6. A machine of the type specified comprising a carriage adapted to travel on the side forms of a road bed, an engine for propelling the same, a series of rake members arran ed to conjointly span the space between the side forms, pairs of rotatable memberson said carriage arranged at opposite ends of said rake members and equipped with radially adjustable cranks engaging in the ends of said members, upwardly projecting longitudinally slotted arms at the ends of said rake members, and elongatable rocking links pivotally associated with the upper end portions of said arms and with frame members of the carriage for cooperation with said rotatable members to impart to said rake members a compound motion, and gearing associating said rotatable members with the engine.

7. A machine of the type specified comprising a carriage adapted to travel on the side forms of a road bed, an engine for propelling the same, a pair of axially aligned rake members and an intermediate offset rake member arranged to conjointly span the space between the side forms and having their respective teeth equally spaced and relatively arranged to uniformly act upon all material penetrated thereby, and mechanism geared to the engine and operatively associated with the several rake bars to impart to the teeth of the latter simultaneously an up and down and rocking movement to cause the same to penetrate paving material, move longitudinally therethrough and emerge therefrom.

8. A machine of the type specified comprising a carriage adapted to travel on the side forms of a road bed, an engine for propelling the same, a pair of axially aligned rake members and an intermediate offset rake member arranged to conjointly span the space between the side forms and having heir respective teeth equally spaced and relatively arranged to uniformly act upon all material penetratedthereby, and mechanism geared to the engine and operatively associated with the several rake bars to impart to the teeth of the latter simultaneously an up and down and rocking movement to cause the same to penetrate paving material, move longitudinally therethrough and emerge therefrom, said gearing arranged to cause the teeth of the said pair of rake members to penetrate the material alternately with respect to the teeth of the other rake member.

9; A machine of the type specified comprising a carriage adapted to travel on the side forms of a road bed, an engine for propelling the same, a pair of axially aligned rake members and an intermediate ofi'set rake member arranged to conj ointly span the space between the side forms and having their respective teeth equally spaced and relatively arranged to uniformly act upon all material penetrated thereby, and mechanism geared to the engine and operatively associated with the several rake bars to impart to the teeth of the latter simultaneously an up and down and rocking movement to cause the same to penetrate paving material, move longitudinally therethrough and emerge therefrom, and means included'in said mechanism for adjusting the depth of penetration and rocking movements respectively of said rake teeth.

ALFRED V. FRENCH. 

